The present invention relates to a protector bar that is adapted to deflect away from the lock or handle of a door objects that pass through the open doorway or are pushed into the door to open it.
It is a common occurrence in many facilities for an individual pushing a cart or other mobile object to pass through a closed doorway by forcing the cart into the door to deflect it open. When this is done, the cart typically strikes the knob or handle protruding from the door which, if repeated often enough, can damage both the door and handle. In hospitals, for example, it is common practice for patients, medicine, and equipment to be transported through doorways in this manner, especially in emergency situations. This of course can, over a period of time, result in substantial damage to doors, door locks and handles, thus giving rise to significant maintenance expenses. In many such facilities, metal coverings are placed over the impact areas on the surface of the door to minimize the damage to the door. However, these measures do nothing to protect the door locks and handles.
The present invention alleviates these problems by providing a protector bar that is designed to protect not only the lock or handle from being struck by a cart or other moving object, but also to deflect and distribute the impact of the cart to minimize damage to the door. The protector bar according to the present invention essentially comprises an integral bar having a deflector portion and a projection portion. The protector bar is intended to be fastened horizontally to the door with the projection portion adjacent to the lock or handle of the door. When mounted, the deflector portion of the bar extends at an acute angle from the surface of the door, and the projection portion extends perpendicular from the door a distance at least as great as the distance the lock or handle protrudes from the door. The edge of the deflector portion where it fastens to the door is beveled so that objects striking the door will not catch on the end of the protector bar. In addition, the deflector end of the bar has a flat mounting pad that sits flush against the surface of the door and serves to distribute the impact of an object striking the bar. Similarly, a mounting plate is fastened to the projection end of the bar flush with the surface of the door to displace the impact at that end of the bar.
As will subsequently be described in greater detail, the size and shape of the protector bar can be readily modified for particular applications on different types of doors. For example, the length of the bar can be expanded to protect a glass area on a door, or the shape of the bar can be slightly modified to properly protect various types of lever door handles.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a reading of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments which makes reference to the following set of drawings in which: